For most people, mornings are tough. Hitting the snooze button like a zombie instead of rolling out of bed like a superstar. A zombie feels drained, fatigued and suffers brain fuzz and needs to reach for coffee or other stimulant-driven beverage; surviving until the caffeine kicks in.

At present I’m reveling in the economic prose of a slim volume of five short stories, each of which is bathed in music, a particular instrument — a sax, a cello, an electric and acoustic guitar — or bluesy songs from the 1950s.